Yes it's very painful. roller back and forth over those very sore bits. I have tight IT bands. I've now got into the routine of doing stretches and roller before and after each run. Seems to be getting easier. If you have pain to the outside of your knee try the hot/cold shower technique, aim the shower head at the painful spot, and do cycles of 1 min cold/1min hot, the physio I was seeing said to do 7 cycles (on the cold cycle you can feel the muscles contracting).

Yes, I do mine after every run as advised by the sports physio I saw about my IT band problem. Mine has not been sore afterwards - only painful on the 'knots' at the time. If it's too painful when you're rolling, the physio suggested rolling by standing up with your roller pressed between you and the wall.

My physio didn't mention the cold shower treatment, but her answer to any pain is ice, ice and more ice! She suggested keeping an ice pack on the sore part for about 20 minutes at a time and repeating several times a day.

A foam roller is basically a log-shaped piece of foam that can be used, by rolling on it, as a form of self-massage. The correct term for this self-massage is self-myofascial release and what the rolling does is release muscle tightness or trigger points/'knots' in the muscles.

When you do any exercise the muscles tear and when you rest the tears repair. By thsi process you body builds more muscle, but it can also leave scar tissue. Sometimes this scar tissue sticks to surrounding tissues such as tendons causing pain.

By applying pressure to these points you are able to aid in the recovery of muscles and assist in returning them to normal function. One way of applying pressure is by getting a massage, or alternatively a cheaper option is self-massage with a foam roller. You can get the same affect rolling the specific points with a hard ball, but the foam roller is easier to use when you wish to roll all of your legs or your back.